Trump administration withdraws $39.27M for Norfolk offshore wind project

The Trump administration last week withdrew $39.27 million in federal funding that had previously been awarded for an offshore wind logistics port in Norfolk and attempted to terminate $20 million for a project that had already been completed in Portsmouth.

The Norfolk Offshore Wind Logistics Port, part of the 111-acre Fairwinds Landing project at Lambert’s Point Docks, is the project losing nearly $40 million that was awarded in 2023 under the Biden administration.

The U.S. Department of Transportation announced on Aug. 29 that Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy withdrew or terminated a total of $679 million in funding for 12 offshore wind projects across the country. The department stated that the action is intended to “ensure federal dollars are prioritized towards restoring America’s maritime dominance and preventing waste.”

The department stated that it identified 12 projects that were not aligned with the current administration’s priorities. The Trump administration has repeatedly criticized and targeted renewable energy projects, instead prioritizing fossil fuels and “traditional forms of energy.”

“Wasteful, wind projects are using resources that could otherwise go towards revitalizing America’s maritime industry,” said Duffy in a statement. “Joe Biden and [former Secretary of Transportation] Pete Buttigieg bent over backwards to use transportation dollars for their Green New Scam agenda while ignoring the dire needs of our shipbuilding industry. Thanks to President Trump, we are prioritizing real infrastructure improvements over fantasy wind projects that cost much and offer little.”

The announcement said the Trump administration has refocused DOT and its Maritime Administration (MARAD) on rebuilding America’s shipbuilding capacity. The DOT says that, where possible, funding from the 12 projects will be recompeted to address port upgrades and other core infrastructure needs of the United States.

Norfolk loses money

The Norfolk Economic Development Authority announced in November 2023 that it had received $39.27 million to assist in transforming the marine terminal at Fairwinds Landing into an offshore wind logistics facility.

Fairwinds Landing is designed to be a maritime operations and logistics hub supporting the offshore wind, defense and transportation industries in Hampton Roads. Fairlead, along with real estate development company The Miller Group and Balicore Construction, formed Fairwinds Landing LLC to work on the project.

The $39.27 million in federal funding was awarded through the Port Infrastructure Development Program (PIDP) in response to a joint application submitted by the Norfolk EDA and Fairwinds Landing LLC.

The EDA announced in 2023 that the funding would help finance the renovation of the aging waterfront infrastructure at Fairwinds Landing. The renovation project was meant to enhance port capabilities for offshore wind operations and maintenance activities, heavy lift operations and cable loading operations.

When it first announced the award, the EDA said the PIDP funding “will be a catalyst for generating hundreds of new jobs and hundreds of millions of dollars in future capital investments at Fairwinds Landing.”

It is unclear how far along the renovation project got before the federal government withdrew the funding. Fairwinds Landing officials did not immediately return requests for comment.

EDA spokesperson Mia Wilson was unable to confirm by press time how far along the Norfolk project had progressed. However, she emailed a statement saying that the EDA will request that MARAD reconsider its withdrawal of the Fairwinds project from the port infrastructure program.

“Our revised project, which we recently submitted to MARAD in response to their request, will help restore America’s maritime dominance and focuses on rebuilding America’s shipbuilding and maritime industrial base in line with MARAD’s current priorities,” Wilson said. “We look forward to working with MARAD to utilize the PIDP funds at Fairwinds to address critical port upgrades that support its goals.”

U.S. Sens. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine, both Democrats, and U.S. Rep. Bobby Scott, D-Newport News, released a joint statement slamming the withdrawal of funding for the logistics facility.

“The withdrawal of federal funding for the Fairwinds Landing facility is further evidence of this administration’s across-the-board, reckless approach to governing,” the statement said. “If the administration took the time to learn about the project, it would realize that it is about investing in maritime supply chains and port infrastructure to support not only clean energy but also shipbuilding and ship repair. Stopping this project makes no sense, hurts our economy, and is completely counterproductive to the administration’s so-called efforts to ‘restore America’s maritime dominance.’”

The three elected officials said they will work with colleagues in Congress, state officials and regional partners to urge the administration to reverse its decision.

Portsmouth finished project before it was too late

The administration also sought to terminate a $20 million PIDP grant for the Portsmouth Marine Terminal offshore wind development project. The money, first announced in January 2022, was for improvements upgrading Portsmouth Marine Terminal into a staging area to support Dominion Energy’s Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW) project, which is about 60% complete.

However, Virginia Port Authority spokesperson Joseph Harris noted the money had already been spent, the project is already completed and said the port is “in good shape.”

“The Port of Virginia has completed the improvements being made at Portsmouth Marine Terminal and as a result, the deep-water terminal is fully-functional,” Harris said in a statement. “The federal government’s Port Infrastructure Development Program (PIDP) grant was integral to the success of this project because funds from that program helped offset the costs of some of the improvements. The project was delivered on-time and on-budget, thus the port has no unobligated federal funds.”

The $20 million was a small component of a larger $223 million redevelopment project that involved upgrading 72 acres of Portsmouth Marine Terminal and 1,500 feet of wharf that now serves as an offshore wind staging port. New York-based construction company Skanska announced in March that it completed the project.

Dominion Energy will use the terminal staging port for its $10.9 billion CVOW project. Once operational, CVOW will consist of 176 wind turbines generating up to 9.5 million megawatt-hours per year, or enough energy to power up to 660,000 homes.

According to Skanska, the Portsmouth terminal serves as a collection and storage site for wind turbine components, which are then transferred to installation vessels.
Virginia Port Authority CEO and Executive Director Stephen Edwards previously said that Skanska delivered the project on time and on budget.

Dominion Energy did not immediately return requests for comment on how the withdrawal of funds for the Norfolk logistics project or the attempted termination of the Portsmouth project may impact the CVOW project and its operations. Last week, Dominion said the CVOW project is still on track for completion in late 2026, but the Trump administration has suspended work on a nearly complete $4 billion wind farm off the coast of Rhode Island and Connecticut, raising concerns for the Virginia wind farm.